Silence Fell
by Pepper Winchester
Summary: Donna is babysitting for her cousin when the Silence falls.


written as a drabble but became this monster. don't ask me what I'm doing because I don't know.

* * *

It came to pass that one Saturday Donna was stuck in the home of a close cousin, Chelsea, babysitting her young children. "I promise, we'll be back by seven," said Chelsea, sounding apologetic. Donna waved her away. "Go! Have fun, alrigh'? We'll be fine back here."

And so Chelsea smiled at her, thanked her repeatedly, and left with her husband for a night out.

Donna turned to face the kids.

One was eight years old. She was currently laying on her stomach on the carpet, drawing with magic markers on some construction paper.

"Alrigh', Hailey, why don't you tell me what you're drawin' there?" Donna sat herself down on the carpet next to the girl in overalls.

Hailey looked at her as though she were painfully dull. It was a look she was quite familiar with, having spent a good deal of time with Sherlock Holmes. "Its a monster," she said, her tone conveying the unsaid last word - duh.

"Oh, er - " Donna leaned over the paper to get a good look at her scribbles. It looked a little bit familiar to her, although she couldn't quite place what it was. "It's lovely."

Hailey rolled her eyes and returned to the paper. Raising her eyebrows, Donna thought she might have better luck with the next youngest child, Aiden.

"So, Aiden, what're you up to?"

Aiden grinned at her, and Donna couldn't help but grin back. His blonde curls and happy disposition reminded her forcibly of Theta. "Playin' wiff mah bear," Aiden said, still too young to form his words properly. It didn't help that he was missing his two front teeth. Donna nodded, about to comment, when the baby started crying upstairs.

"Be righ' back, you two," She said, getting to her feet. Both kids ignored her and carried on about their own devices.

When she walked into the nursery, she thought she saw something in the room, but of course it was nothing and she quickly forgot about it. Chelsea's baby, Jackson was crying loudly now, but after a few moments it became evident that nothing was wrong and he didn't need anything. It was almost as though something had scared him. _That's strange, _Donna thought, but she was able to quiet him down and get him back to sleep.

When she came back downstairs, Aiden and Hailey were just as they were before. The living room was too quiet, in Donna's opinion, as she stood in the doorway. Finally she declared, "Okay, you two, we're gonna play a game."

Aiden made an excited noise. Hailey checked to see if she was serious then sighed and carefully stacked her drawings, meticulously arranged her markers by color, and went into the kitchen to leave them on the table.

They set up the board for CandyLand on the living room floor and began playing the game. Aiden kept trying to cheat, but fortunately Hailey knew this and watched him like a hawk.

Donna was stuck in the Molasses Swamp when she looked up and saw something horrible behind Hailey.

It looked like a tall man in a suit, with horrible long fingers. When she looked at it's face though, she gasped audibly. It was wrinkled, had no mouth, and looked almost - angry.

"What ish it?" asked Aiden, looking at her face with concern. She turned to him, and suddenly couldn't figure out why there was a cold sweat down her back.

"What is what?" She asked, drawing her next card.

"You saw something," accused Hailey.

"No I didn't."

Hailey turned around, but there was nothing there. She squinted at Donna one last time, then shrugged it off and returned to the game. When Hailey finally reached the rainbow square at the end, Aiden loudly complained that he needed to go to the bathroom.

"Fine, come on," sighed Hailey. Aiden was still toilet training, so Donna left him to his sister. The two went upstairs and Donna put the game back into it's box then went into the kitchen to make Spaghetti-os for dinner.

In the kitchen, she saw it again.

"Wha' the _Hell _are you?" She demanded, remembering it from before. "An' how come I forgot you were there?!"

The thing cocked its head slowly to the side. Without taking her eyes off it, Donna grabbed one of Hailey's magic markers off the table and popped the cap off.

"We are the Silence," it said, in a strange, hissing voice. Donna swiped the marker over her arm and dropped it back on table.

"We?" she said. "We? You mean there's more'a you?"

"Donna?"

Donna turned around as Aiden and Hailey came into the kitchen. "Didja wash your hands?" she asked, having completely forgotten what just happened. Hailey once again rolled her eyes and began telling her about how of course they washed their hands, they weren't stupid after all. Donna chuckled quietly to herself and grabbed a few cans of Spaghetti-os for their dinner.

The two were seated with plastic bowls and spoons when Donna heard a noise in the living room. Sighing, Donna set down her own spoon and stood. "Be righ' back," she said, then ducked out of the kitchen.

The Silent was on the staircase. "Oi!" Donna shouted, remembering it again. She ran after it, but it ignored her like she wasn't there. She ran ahead of it and blocked its way down the hall.

"The Silence shapes human history to its advantage," hissed the Silent, not looking at her. Its eyes were fixed on the door at the end of the hall - Jackson's room.

"Oh no, you don't!"

"The child will grow to shape history. We must set him on the course of history …

"You won't set anythin', sunshine!"

Even though she knew what would happen, she turned around. She had no idea why, but she was consumed with this need to go get Jackson - quickly. Without knowing her own reasons, she ran into the nursery and scooped up the baby, who began to cry as he was jostled.

She ran downstairs and glimpsed another Silent. "We've got to get out of here!" she called, racing into the kitchen. "What? Why?" asked Hailey.

"I don't know. But we haveta leave."

She shepherded the two to the front door and threw it open.

On the doorstep, Chelsea and her husband stood, keys in hand.

"Where are you going?" asked Chelsea, looking thoroughly confused. Donna opened her mouth to answer, but since she couldn't remember what had caused it, her fear was quickly fading away.

"No where," Donna said with a laugh, soothing Jackson. "We were just - you know. Welcome home! They were righ' angels, you know."

Chelsea and her husband came inside, and Donna took Jackson upstairs to his crib. "You're gonna be a great man someday, you know?" she said, kissing his forehead before tucking him back in. Already he was drifting off to sleep.

"Thanks again, Donna," said Chelsea, as Donna came back downstairs. She waved it away, smiling. "It's nothin', Chelsea. Anytime, really! See ya, Aiden, Hailey."

Aiden waved happily, Hailey, halfheartedly. Donna hugged Chelsea then headed out.

When Donna got home, she frowned at her arm. A big green mark stained her skin, looking like it was from a marker. "Hailey," Donna said, shaking her head, then headed to the bathroom to scrub it off.


End file.
